A YEAR OF TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS

I’ve never been much for baring my soul to people, but sometimes it’s just therapeutic! The past year has been the worst year that I have had in a long time. I’m really not complaining, because I take full responsibility for it. I also don’t feel real bad about it, because I learned some very valuable lessons that will last me for a lifetime.

First, my fiance of twelve years left me. Of course, as anyone can imagine that in and of itself was devastating. Couple that with the fact that our living expenses were based on a two-income household and you have a good reason to be depressed!

Then only three months later I had a major heart attack. I have a complete blockage of the L.A.D. Artery (Left Anterior Descending Artery), otherwise known as “The Widow Maker”. This took me out of work for three months.

Then after I got healthier, I met someone that I really liked that turned out to be a complete “child-like demon from that special part of hell where only the worst of the worst get sent”… This “lady” was nothing but a scandal laden, trouble making, thieving, lying, conniving, manipulative nightmare. She managed to damage my company by trying to blackmail some of my clients, and letting one of the subject’s of one of my investigations know all the details of his case, lied to the court system and got me put out of my own house for ten days. Simply put, she was a really bad person. Watching her go was like watching Christmas come!

Then because of how bad my finances were affected by not being able to work, and because I managed to get myself into a “don’t give a damn state of mind”, I lost my house to foreclosure.

And to top all of that off, I had a tragic even occur at my house, that had a profound mental affect on me.  Some of you may know about that, most of you may not. But I can’t even elaborate on it right now.

So, to sum up this past year, it has been utter hell! But I learned a lot. And the lessons I learned will last for the rest of my life. I associated with people that were not good people, because I was afraid of being alone. That happens when you are with someone for twelve years. I thought that even being around bad people beat being alone. What I learned was that being alone beats being around bad people. Trust me when I tell you this, choose who you let into your circle very carefully!

I learned that there are a lot of people out there that will tell you they are your friend, but very few that will actually be your friend. Usually they are telling you they are your friend when there is something for them to gain from it. Friendship is an action, not a word.  Remember that, remember that true friends will be there for you in the good times and the bad times, they’ll never leave your side. I dropped a lot of “friends” this past year, and they are people that I never want to associate with again. Once I saw them for who they are, it did not bother me at all to just completely get them out of my life.

“In the end we are all alone, and nobody is coming to save you”, it’s a line from one of my favorite television shows. But sometimes the simplest phrase can have the most profound meaning. It’s true, that when things get bad, even if you are all by yourself, you still have one person; yourself! In order to be successful, we have to take accountability for what we do, we have to make our minds up not to give up, and we have to push our self to keep moving forward.

I am getting things back in order. I have moved, and moved on! I am focusing on my company, and the friends that I have kept have turned out to be true friends. I think that the friends I have now, are really true friends, and provide a great support system because they care. We all need friends, we all need someone to talk to every once in a while, and it is good when those people are loyal, genuine friends. My company will prosper again. I am coming out on the other side of this past year a better person. And I am thankful for the opportunity to learn these lessons.

Okay, enough of this. You got a glimpse! Now it is back to business for me.

Thank you for reading, hopefully you will learn something from this post, and not have to learn anything the hard way, like I did.

 

Rick Gurley